# US 9,518,743 B2 · Method for operating a gas turbine burner with a swirl generator

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- Number: US 9,518,743 B2
- Document ID: US9518743B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 14/074,292
- Filed: 2013-11-07
- Published: 2014-05-08
- Granted: 2016-12-13
- Earliest claimed: 2009-01-15
- Assignees: General Electric Technology GmbH
- Applicants: ALSTOM Technology Ltd
- Inventors: Adnan Eroglu
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US9518743B2

## CPC

- F23R 3/34: Feeding into different combustion zones
- F23C 6/047: {with fuel supply in stages}
- F23D 11/105: {at least one of the fluids being submitted to a swirling motion}
- F23D 11/12: characterised by the shape or arrangement of the outlets from the nozzle
- F23D 11/402: {Mixing chambers downstream of the nozzle}
- F23D 14/58: characterised by the shape or arrangement of the outlet or outlets from the nozzle, e.g. of annular configuration
- F23D 14/64: with injectors
- F23D 17/002: {gaseous or liquid fuel}
- F23R 3/12: inducing a vortex
- F23R 3/286: {having fuel-air premixing devices (F23R3/30 takes precedence)}
- F23R 3/343: {Pilot flames, i.e. fuel nozzles or injectors using only a very small proportion of the total fuel to insure continuous combustion (ignition in gas-turbine plants F02C7/264; pilot flame igniters F23Q9/00)}
- F23R 3/346: {for staged combustion}
- F23R 3/36: Supply of different fuels
- F23C 2900/07002: Premix burners with air inlet slots obtained between offset curved wall surfaces, e.g. double cone burners
- F23C 2900/07021: Details of lances
- F23D 2900/00015: Pilot burners specially adapted for low load or transient conditions, e.g. for increasing stability
- F23D 2900/11101: Pulverising gas flow impinging on fuel from pre-filming surface, e.g. lip atomizers
- F23R 2900/03341: Sequential combustion chambers or burners
- F23R: GENERATING COMBUSTION PRODUCTS OF HIGH PRESSURE OR HIGH VELOCITY, e.g. GAS-TURBINE COMBUSTION CHAMBERS (fluidised bed combustion apparatus specially adapted for operation at superatmospheric pressures F23C10/16)
- F23C: METHODS OR APPARATUS FOR COMBUSTION USING FLUID FUEL OR SOLID FUEL SUSPENDED IN {A CARRIER GAS OR} AIR (burners F23D)
- F23D: BURNERS

## Abstract

Methods are directed to operating a burner of a gas turbine. The burner includes a swirl generator and, downstream of it, a mixing tube. The swirl generator is defined by at least two walls facing one another to define a conical swirl chamber and includes nozzles arranged to inject fuel and apertures arranged to feed an oxidizer into the swirl chamber. The burner includes a lance which extends along a longitudinal axis of the swirl generator and side nozzles for ejecting a fuel within the burner. The side nozzles have their axes inclined with respect to the axis of the lance and can be positioned along the axis of the burner. During operation, an oil fuel or gaseous fuel is injected into to the burner through the lance tip and the lance side nozzles at various percentages depending on an operating mode of the gas turbine.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A method for operating a burner having a swirl generator defined by at least two walls facing one another to define a substantially conical swirl chamber, the swirl generator including swirl generator nozzles arranged to inject fuel and apertures arranged to feed an oxidizer into said swirl chamber, a mixing tube positioned downstream of the swirl generator, and a lance positioned inside at least the swirl generator, the lance extending along a longitudinal axis of the swirl generator and being provided with lance side nozzles for ejecting gaseous fuel within the burner, the lance side nozzles having axes inclined with respect to an axis of the lance, wherein the lance includes one of an annular protrusion extending from and encircling an outer surface of a body of the lance or an inner surface of a lid encircling the body of the lance, the method comprising:
at starting, injecting about 70-80% of the gaseous fuel through the lance tip nozzle, injecting about 20% through the lance side nozzles, and injecting about 0-10% of the gaseous fuel through the swirl generator nozzles;
at idle operation, injecting about 70% of the gaseous fuel through the lance tip nozzle, injecting about 20% of the gaseous fuel through the lance side nozzles, and injecting about 10% of the gaseous fuel through the swirl generator nozzles;
at part load, injecting about 40% of the gaseous fuel through the lance tip nozzle, injecting about 20% of the gaseous fuel through the lance side nozzles, and injecting about 40% of the gaseous fuel through the swirl generator nozzles; and
at full load, injecting about 5% of the gaseous fuel through the lance tip nozzle, injecting about 20% of the gaseous fuel through the lance side nozzles, and injecting about 75% of the gaseous fuel through the swirl generator nozzles;
wherein the gaseous fuel injected through the lance side nozzles is injected against the one of the annular protrusion or the inner surface of the lid as the gaseous fuel exits the lance side nozzles.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the gaseous fuel is injected against the inner surface of the lid as the gaseous fuel exits the lance side nozzles, and the lance side nozzles are disposed at an acute angle with respect to the axis of the lance.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the gaseous fuel is injected against the annular protrusion as the gaseous fuel exits the lance side nozzles, and the lance side nozzles are disposed at an acute angle with respect to the axis of the lance.

### Claim 4

A method for operating a burner having a swirl generator defined by at least two walls facing one another to define a substantially conical swirl chamber, the swirl generator including swirl generator nozzles arranged to inject fuel and apertures arranged to feed an oxidizer into said swirl chamber, a mixing tube positioned downstream of the swirl generator, and a lance positioned inside at least the swirl generator, the lance extending along a longitudinal axis of the swirl generator and being provided with lance side nozzles for ejecting fuel within the burner, the lance side nozzles having axes inclined with respect to an axis of the lance, wherein the lance includes an annular protrusion extending from and encircling an outer surface of a body of the lance, the method comprising:
during operation with oil fuel:
at starting, injecting about 80% of the oil fuel through a lance tip nozzle and injecting about 20% of the oil fuel through the lance side nozzles;
at idle operation, injecting about 75% of the oil fuel through the lance tip nozzle and injecting about 25% of the oil fuel through the lance side nozzles;
at part load, injecting about 50% of the oil fuel through the lance tip nozzle and injecting about 50% of the oil fuel through the lance side nozzles;
at full load, injecting about 10% of the oil fuel through the lance tip nozzle and injecting about 90% of the oil fuel through the lance side nozzles; and,
wherein the oil fuel injected through the lance side nozzles is injected against the annular protrusion as the oil fuel exits the lance side nozzles; and,
during operation with gaseous fuel:
at starting, injecting about 70-80% of the gaseous fuel through the lance tip nozzle, injecting about 20% of the gaseous fuel through the lance side nozzles, and injecting about 0-10% of the gaseous fuel through the swirl generator nozzles;
at idle operation, injecting about 70% of the gaseous fuel through the lance tip nozzle, injecting about 20% of the gaseous fuel through the lance side nozzles, and injecting about 10% of the gaseous fuel through the swirl generator nozzles;
at part load, injecting about 40% of the gaseous fuel through the lance tip nozzle, injecting about 20% of the gaseous fuel through the lance side nozzles, and injecting about 40% of the gaseous fuel through the swirl generator nozzles; and
at full load, injecting about 5% of the gaseous fuel through the lance tip nozzle, injecting about 20% of the gaseous fuel through the lance side nozzles, and injecting about 15% of the gaseous fuel through the swirl generator nozzles;
wherein the gaseous fuel injected through the lance side nozzles is injected against the annular protrusion as the gaseous fuel exits the lance side nozzles.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The method of claim 4, wherein the lance side nozzles are disposed at an acute angle with respect to the axis of the lance, the method comprising:
during the operation with oil fuel:
generating a cylindrical fuel film encircling the lance via the oil fuel injected from the lance side nozzles.

### Claim 6 (depends on 4)

The method of claim 4, wherein the lance side nozzles are disposed at an acute angle with respect to the axis of the lance, the method comprising:
during the operation with oil fuel;
generating a discrete fuel film encircling the lance via the oil fuel injected from the lance side nozzles.

### Claim 7 (depends on 4)

The method of claim 4, comprising:
during the operation with oil fuel:
injecting the oil fuel through the lance tip nozzle along an axis of the burner so that a cloud of fuel droplets is concentrated along the axis of the burner.

### Claim 8 (depends on 4)

The method of claim 4, comprising:
during the operation with gaseous fuel:
dragging away the gaseous fuel injected by the lance side nozzles via air flow towards an annular periphery of the swirl chamber and the mixing tube.

### Claim 9

A method for operating a burner having a swirl generator defined by at least two walls facing one another to define a substantially conical swirl chamber, the swirl generator including swirl generator nozzles arranged to inject fuel and apertures arranged to feed an oxidizer into said swirl chamber, a mixing tube positioned downstream of the swirl generator, and a lance positioned inside at least the swirl generator, the lance extending along a longitudinal axis of the swirl generator and being provided with lance side nozzles for ejecting fuel within the burner, the lance side nozzles having axes inclined with respect to an axis of the lance, wherein the lance includes an inner surface of a lid encircling a body of the lance, and the lance side nozzles are disposed at an acute angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the lance, the method comprising:
during operation with oil fuel:
at starting, injecting about 80% of the oil fuel through a lance tip nozzle and injecting about 20% of the oil fuel through the lance side nozzles;
at idle operation, injecting about 75% of the oil fuel through the lance tip nozzle and injecting about 25% of the oil fuel through the lance side nozzles;
at part load, injecting about 50% of the oil fuel through the lance tip nozzle and injecting about 50% of the oil fuel through the lance side nozzles;
at full load, injecting about 10% of the oil fuel through the lance tip nozzle and injecting about 90% of the oil fuel through the lance side nozzles; and,
generating a cylindrical fuel film encircling the lance via the oil fuel injected from the lance side nozzles;
wherein the oil fuel injected through the lance side nozzles is injected against the inner surface of the lid; and,
during operation with gaseous fuel:
at starting, injecting about 70-80% of the gaseous fuel through the lance tip nozzle, injecting about 20% of the gaseous fuel through the lance side nozzles, and injecting about 0-10% of the gaseous fuel through the swirl generator nozzles;
at idle operation, injecting about 70% of the gaseous fuel through the lance tip nozzle, injecting about 20% of the gaseous fuel through the lance side nozzles, and injecting about 10% of the gaseous fuel through the swirl generator nozzles;
at part load, injecting about 40% of the gaseous fuel through the lance tip nozzle, injecting about 20% of the gaseous fuel through the lance side nozzles, and injecting about 40% of the gaseous fuel through the swirl generator nozzles; and
at full load, injecting about 5% of the gaseous fuel through the lance tip nozzle, injecting about 20% of the gaseous fuel through the lance side nozzles, and injecting about 15% of the gaseous fuel through the swirl generator nozzles;
wherein the gaseous fuel injected through the lance side nozzles is injected against the inner surface of the lid.